News

Sports Minister Salutes Table Tennis Players At Africa Senior Tourney

The Honourable Minister of Sports Development, Senator John Owan Enoh congratulates Team Nigeria athletes for making the country proud at the 2023 Africa Senior Table Tennis Championships, held in Tunis, Tunisia, between September 11 – 17, 2023.

Africa’s top-ranked player, Aruna Quadri won gold for Nigeria in the men’s singles after defeating familiar foe, Ahmed Saleh of Egypt by 4-0 (11-2, 12-10, 11-6, 11-6) in the final match played in Tunis. The victory ensured Quadri retained his African title at the same venue where he lost the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games ticket, due to an injury.

In the Women’s Doubles event, Nigeria’s duo of Funke Oshonaike and Fatimo Bello combined their experience and youthful energy to overpower Cameroon’s Sarah Hanffou and Egypt’s Marwa Alhodaby 3-2 (11-8, 8-11, 11-4, 7-11, 12-10), as the Nigerians clinched gold in the pulsating final.

The Minister said “On the behalf of His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and all Nigerians, I heartily congratulate these incredible athletes for bringing glory to the country in far away Tunisia. Defeating all-comers on the continent, in a foreign soil takes resilience, hard work, strength, and discipline. While the path to success has not been easy, their sense of patriotism remained unwavering.”

“The Ministry is committed to putting everything in place to ensure that athletes are adequately prepared for championships, with their welfare adequately sorted out too. We understand the need to put athletes in their best shape in and outside competition cycles, and the Ministry will keep working with sports federations to achieve this,” John Enoh added.

He also congratulated Olajide Omotayo and Idowu Saheed who both lost in the men’s singles semi-finals, urging them to take pride in their outings and reflect on their performances.

Abdul Noah Ocholi

Recent Posts

Curtis Jones Opens Up On Mohamed Salah’s Liverpool Future And Reveals How Star Forward Helped Him Through Tough Times

Curtis Jones has lifted the lid on the mood inside the Liverpool dressing room following…

28 minutes ago

Arsenal Injury Woes Deepen As Ben White Limps Off In Narrow Win Over Wolves

Arsenal returned to winning ways on Saturday night with a hard-fought 2-1 victory over bottom-placed…

35 minutes ago

Van Dijk Backs Salah To Stay Amid Liverpool Uncertainty

Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk has publicly thrown his support behind Mohamed Salah, admitting he…

41 minutes ago

Yves Bissouma Apologises For Nitrous Oxide Use Amid Mental Health Struggles

Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Yves Bissouma has issued a public apology after being filmed using nitrous…

1 hour ago

Crystal Palace Boss Oliver Glasner Hails Christantus Uche After Dream First Start

Crystal Palace manager Oliver Glasner has showered praise on Nigerian midfielder Christantus Uche after an…

1 hour ago

Akor Adams And Chidera Ejuke Fire Warning Shots Ahead Of 2025 AFCON

Super Eagles forwards Akor Adams and Chidera Ejuke sent a clear message to fans and…

1 hour ago